House of Assembly Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2) 53 2 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Housing SA Waiting List Housing SA Waiting List Ms SANDERSON House of Assembly Adelaide Housing SA Waiting List Ms SANDERSON (Adelaide) (14:35): My question is again to the Minister for Social Housing. Can the minister inform the house how many people are on the waiting list for a Housing Trust property and the breakdown of each of the three categories? The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON House of Assembly Ramsay Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion Minister for Social Housing Minister for Multicultural Affairs Minister for Ageing Minister for Youth Minister for Volunteers Housing SA Waiting List The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON (Ramsay—Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, Minister for Social Housing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers) (14:35): Just a moment and I will find that for you. Members interjecting: The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON House of Assembly The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I understand this is a question that has been asked several times of me, but I would like to answer accurately because I know that the member for Adelaide is very specific. On 31 December there were 21,266 applicants on the public housing and Aboriginal housing waiting lists, and 15.1 per cent were category 1. As I have outlined in the house before, category 1 is for those with urgent needs: customers who are either homeless or at risk of homelessness who face significant barriers to accessing long-term accommodation. The wait times vary between a few months and several years, depending on the house type and the area required. Category 2 is 28 per cent of the list and they are of high needs. These are customers who demonstrate barriers to accessing long-term accommodation because of health problems, financial issues or social problems. Disability support pensioners are given this category. There is still significant wait time. Category 3, which is 56.5 per cent of people, have housing affordability issues. It is for all applicants who do not qualify for either category 1 or 2 but who still meet income and asset eligibility requirements. Customers who can demonstrate exceptional needs may be elevated to category 1 or 2. Category 4, which is the remainder—a very small percentage—is current tenants who have applied and been approved for transfer to another Housing SA property but who do not demonstrate special needs required for category 1 or 2.